Jaron “Boots” Ennis successfully defended his IBF welterweight title on Saturday night in Philadelphia at the Wells Fargo Arena, but the performance was from what most expected from the 27-year-old.
Ennis prevailed by a unanimous decision, dropping Karen Chukhadzhian in the fifth round of their rematch, which also saw the challenger penalize a point for repeated holding.
The three judges scored the fight for Ennis (119-107, 117-109, 116-110). The scores were closer than in the first meeting with Chukhadzhian but still clearly in Ennis’ favor. The house was packed with Ennis’ fans in his home city, but there was very little energy the whole night as the fight was more competitive than many expected.
After the fight, a seemingly embarrassed Ennis said he might be done at 147 pounds. Ennis is eyeing potential matchups at 154 pounds with much bigger names available to him in that weight class.
He doubled down on the concept later during a meeting with the press saying he is tired of fighting bottom tier guys.
His promoter, Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn, wasn’t sold on the idea. However, he did lean into the increasing probably five-v-five concept with Golden Boy Promotions, which would likely see Ennis taking on Vergil Ortiz Jr. in the headliner for that historic card.
Those are the facts from Saturday night, but there were a few key takeaways from what turned out to be a complicated night for Ennis.
Chukhadzhian Came to Compete
Chukhadzhian came to fight on Saturday, which wasn’t the case in the first meeting with Ennis when he ran more than punched. Chukhadzhian’s willingness to throw seemed to catch Ennis off guard, and the challenger repeatedly landed left hooks and straight rights on the champion’s head.
Chukhadzhian did a great job muddying the action with holding, which led to him being penalized and keeping him in the fight.
Ennis seemed to underestimate his opponent and was hellbent on getting the finish.
Ennis wanted an easy, showcase-style fight, but Chukhadzhian wouldn’t cooperate. Ennis might have found himself in deep water if he had more punching power.
Corner Disagreements Seemed to Aggravate and Distract Ennis
Throughout the night, Ennis’ dad and trainer, Bozy Ennis, kept calling for his son to “get him outta there,” but there was very little in the way of specific instructions. During the fight, boots seemed preoccupied with fans, friends, and family ringside and his dad.
Ennis was already in the midst of a fight that turned out to be more challenging than he expected, and it appeared he needed more focus than chastisement.
Ennis’ Defense Isn’t Good Enough for Elite Fighters
No matter how you slice it, Ennis gets hit far too often by fighters who aren’t top-tier guys. Imagining Ennis in the ring with Ryan Garcia, Terence Crawford, and others he has called out could seemingly lead to a devastating loss for the Philly native.
Ennis punches hard, is physically strong, and has a solid chin, but it’s not a good idea to test the latter against guys who can really crack and are deadly accurate.
Ennis needs some work on that aspect of his game before elevating his level of competition.
